Frozen Birdbaths

The temperature dropped below freezing last night and the birdbaths are frozen over. I gave the feathered ones extra rations this morning to help them ward off the cold.

I gave my first exams this past week for BIO 103. Lots of D's and F's as I expected. It has been hard to find a happy medium between scaring and encouraging them to study. I have been pushing the 5-10 hours a week outside of class mantra. I don't think I will see much of a change over the next month. This morning I did play with the idea of modifying my syllabus to give F students extra homework assignments. It is a stick incentive that would probably backfire. What bothers me the most are the sweet students who attend faithfully but never catch on.

I made a huge mistake this week and accused my colleague Shannan of not returning the 104 specimens she borrowed. I apologized but I still feel bad. Abbie's uncle died on Wednesday. She left soon after she heard the news.

I pick up my new prescription glasses tomorrow. I finally broke down and got my eyes examined by an optometrist. A former student of mine, Dr. Barton, had taken my micro class way back when I used to teach it. Damn presbyopia...My new glasses make me look like Drew Carey.